Lumina Foundation is working to increase the share of adults in the U.S. labor force with college degrees or other credentials of value leading to economic prosperity.
What’s the secret to success at Featherstone University? “Surrounding yourself with people who pronounce ‘Versailles’ correctly,” its website reads. Prospective students can enroll if they meet a set of “very particular criteria,” like possessing generational wealth, demonstrating equestrian dressage skills, and owning an ancestral portrait.
But there's a catch: Featherstone University isn’t real. It’s a satirical campaign created by Colorado Mesa University. The ad presents a caricature of academic elitism—and points to Colorado Mesa as the antidote at a time when public confidence in higher education has reached new lows across the political spectrum.
New College in Florida wants to be the first school to sign President Donald Trump’s so-called “Compact With Higher Education.” In an announcement this week, officials at the public liberal arts college said they had already instituted many elements outlined in the compact.
New College was not on the initial list of institutions the compact was shared with but seems eager to gain any benefit it can with federal funding. Schools that sign the compact would give the federal government unprecedented control over what colleges are allowed to teach and who is allowed to teach, among other requirements.
As college advising managers, Taylor Miller and Craig Smith work in tandem with Grove City High School's guidance counselors in helping students discover, "What's your E?"
These pathways—enroll, employ, and enlist—have long been the three options on the table for high school seniors looking beyond graduation day. However, the conversation about those choices among students, parents, and other stakeholders has evolved recently, with college advisors such as Miller and Smith at the forefront of the discussions.
It's the eighth week of fall classes at the Mission del Paso campus of El Paso Community College. At most college campuses, Week 8 means students are just around the midpoint of a more typical 14-to-18-week semester. But at Mission del Paso, students have made it to the end of the term.
Their campus is among a group of institutions across the country where compressed classes have become the norm. Some educators see the abbreviated calendar as a way to improve students’ chances of moving more quickly toward graduation. Supporters say the model is especially appealing to students with work or family responsibilities on top of schoolwork.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which Congress passed in July, creates sweeping changes to higher education—including a new tax rate for university endowments and accountability metrics for student income levels after graduation.
It also directly impacts college students, threatening their access to food assistance programs and their ability to pay for college, which experts warn could hamper their persistence and completion.
As federal support for higher education continues to decline, a new report from the Higher Education, Race and the Economy Lab at UC Merced offers states a roadmap for filling the gap—one that could dramatically increase college graduation rates while generating significant economic returns.
The research, which focuses on students from families who are both low-income and low-wealth—dubbed "dually disadvantaged students"—reveals a critical blind spot in how states allocate financial aid.
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